The Diva Digs Up the Dirt

Sophie finally has some down time between jobs, but her plans awry when Natasha, without Sophie's knowledge or approval, decides that Sophie needs a backyard renovation and enlists a TV crew to tear up her yard and build a much needed garage.

To stay out of the way of the construction, Sophie tries to surprise her boyfriend, Wolf, with a new rosebush in his yard to replace the one that died. However, while digging away, she uncovers more than what she expects and causes problems that need to be addressed.

At the same time Sophie is also drawn into a problem with one of her family clients. How it all weaves together kept this reader engaged so that I couldn't put it down.

Sophie decides to surprise her boyfriend Wolf by planting a rosebush in his yard while he is away. But she is the one who is surprised when she digs up a purse belong to Wolf’s missing wife. People thought she had just abandoned her husband when she disappeared a few years ago, but what women would leave bury her purse with all her identification in it? Now everyone is wondering if Wolf did indeed have something to do with her disappearance, perhaps even as far as murder. Sophie is determined to prove him innocent, but she may not like what she finds. This intriguing series just keeps getting better. This installment is outstanding, and may take the series in a different direction.

There was a lot going in Diva Digs up the Dirt, the sixth domestic diva mystery. One storyline, involving a cable tv reality show, seems to be in place as a vehicle for Natasha, Sophie's rival in the world of domesticity. However, the main storyline and mystery, which involve Sophie and her friend Nina in another crime, was much more fulfilling. Roscoe Greene and his eccentric family add a great deal of life to this story and I liked how everything came together as the book neared the end, with the seemingly disparate storylines.

Whoever said that the more things change the more they look alike clearly hasn't read this book. It's a major departure from the usual solid storytelling the author served. There are less people to keep track of. I didn't know what score to give this book. It could be a one, two or three stars. The reading experience was shambolic as I suffered from reader's burnout. On the plus side, the bittersweet conclusion appealed to my nature. The only predictable thing was the overuse, again, of more than one attempting killer, which Krista Davis uses all the time to complicate her plot. That is all.

Sophie finds a purse belonging to Wolf's missing ex-wife in his backyard. He has to go on leave from his police job. I'm finding it difficult to really summarize this book without giving away too much of the plot so I'll just give a few reactions to it. This is the first book I've read in this series although it is the sixth for me. I found myself struggling to figure out the relationships between the characters. Sometimes I found it difficult to even figure out who someone was or what their occupation was. I have a feeling this is a series that should be read in order. Each chapter was introduced by a snippet of a gardening advice column, alternating between Sophie's and Natasha's advice which were sometimes polar opposites. I'm not show more really sure if this series works for me. I probably need to go back and begin with the first in the series to determine that. The solution to the mystery wasn't a surprise. There were definite pointers to it from early in the book. I'm not in a hurry to go back and read the first in the series although I haven't ruled it out. show less

Poor Sophie. She is suppose to have 2 weeks vacation. Without her knowing it, her nemesis Natasha arranges for Sophie to get a garage from a reality TV show. It isn't totally benevolent on Natasha's part as she wants to take part in the show.
Meanwhile, Sophie (to get away from Natasha and the TV crew) decides to replace a rose bush in her boyfriend Wolf's garden. As she is digging around the old bush to remove it, she uncovers a purse. After opening it, she discovers that it belongs to Wolf's missing wife which puts the spotlight back on Wolf. Where is his wife? Did he kill her?
Then besides this, people that she knows are falling ill or dying. Sophie can never leave anything alone and starts to investigate.
As usual there are tips show more (this time on gardening) from Natasha and Sophie. show less

Loved it! Best of the series so far. Even though I could see the twist at the end coming, I didn't have all the details right. I love being surprised!